AI Companion, Amy, Promoting HIV Prevention in South Africa

Women and young girls in Africa are disproportionately at risk for HIV, due to education barriers, stigma and gender-based violence. Specifically, of all new HIV infections occurring among adolescents in sub-Saharan Africa, 80% are in girls aged 15–19 years old. In 2017, HIV cases in women and children ages 10 to 19 living in Eastern and Southern Africa accounted for 25% of HIV infections globally, according to an article published in The Lancet Global Health.

Nonprofit company, Audere, is using generative AI (GenAI) to lessen incidence and promote HIV prevention in South Africa.

Their program, called Self-Care from Anywhere, provides youth-focused prevention engagement via WhatsApp. Care is delivered through a confidential AI companion called Amy.

“Amy helps people navigate that self-care journey,” Sarah Morris, CPO of Audere, said during a recent interview with Managed Healthcare Executive. “She provides them personalized counseling. She remembers what they shared last time she asked them about their life and what she's doing is collecting information to understand their vulnerability, guiding them towards HIV self-testing.”

Sarah Morris

The platform is tied to a telehealth center run by clinicians, who can then provide the services users seek.

Morris and her colleagues recently presented at the International AIDS Society meeting in Kigali, Rwanda.